39 years after Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster: People in Hiroshima stage a sit-in protest, arguing “Humans and nuclear power cannot coexist”
Apr. 27, 2025
by Maho Yamamoto, Staff Writer
On April 26, the day marking the 39th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident, the Hiroshima Congress against A-and-H Bombs (Hiroshima Gensuikin) and the Hiroshima Peace Action Center held a sit-in to appeal for escape from dependence on nuclear power and its abolition at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Naka Ward, Hiroshima. Thirty-seven people took part in the protest, including members of the two organizations in addition to A-bomb survivors.
By holding a banner which said, “Nuclear power and humans cannot go hand in hand,” they held the sit-in protest for about 30 minutes in front of the Cenotaph for A-bomb Victims. Tetsuo Kaneko, 76, co-chair of Hiroshima Gensuikin, said emphatically, “The problem with a nuclear power plant disaster is that the accident creates hibakusha (nuclear disaster victims) due to the spread of radiation.” Toshiyuki Mimaki, 83, chair of Hiroshima Hidankyo, appealed, “I feel concerned nuclear power plants around the world still seem to operate without assuming a major accident can happen.”
They adopted an appeal statement to oppose the restart of nuclear power plant operations and the construction of new or additional nuclear reactors. The statement will be sent to the prime minister’s office by postal mail.
Their sit-ins against nuclear power plants have been held annually since 1987, the year following the Chernobyl accident, with the exception of 2020, the first year of the Covid pandemic.
(Originally published on April 27, 2025)
On April 26, the day marking the 39th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident, the Hiroshima Congress against A-and-H Bombs (Hiroshima Gensuikin) and the Hiroshima Peace Action Center held a sit-in to appeal for escape from dependence on nuclear power and its abolition at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Naka Ward, Hiroshima. Thirty-seven people took part in the protest, including members of the two organizations in addition to A-bomb survivors.
By holding a banner which said, “Nuclear power and humans cannot go hand in hand,” they held the sit-in protest for about 30 minutes in front of the Cenotaph for A-bomb Victims. Tetsuo Kaneko, 76, co-chair of Hiroshima Gensuikin, said emphatically, “The problem with a nuclear power plant disaster is that the accident creates hibakusha (nuclear disaster victims) due to the spread of radiation.” Toshiyuki Mimaki, 83, chair of Hiroshima Hidankyo, appealed, “I feel concerned nuclear power plants around the world still seem to operate without assuming a major accident can happen.”
They adopted an appeal statement to oppose the restart of nuclear power plant operations and the construction of new or additional nuclear reactors. The statement will be sent to the prime minister’s office by postal mail.
Their sit-ins against nuclear power plants have been held annually since 1987, the year following the Chernobyl accident, with the exception of 2020, the first year of the Covid pandemic.
(Originally published on April 27, 2025)
